Center Helps A Community In Conflict

City Group Teaches Mediation, Listening Skills

In Hartford's Neighborhoods

Unlike many people who try to avoid conflict whenever they can, Martey Rhine tends to tackle it head on.

Her job in organization development is all about helping people with problems.

"Conflict is something I run into a lot," said Rhine. "A lot of people are afraid of dealing with conflict; I never have been."

For more than 20 years, Rhine has been searching for new and effective ways of mediation and communication. The best so far, she said, has been acquired at the Center for Conflict Transformation, a Hartford organization that has been training community leaders in conflict mediation and careful listening skills for about two years.

"It works way better than any other mediation technique I've used before," said Rhine. "It invites people to put their stories on the table and be heard."

Begun in Hartford in 2000, the center was one response to the fatal shooting by a police officer in April 1999 of Aquan Salmon, a 14-year-old robbery suspect.

A group of concerned residents met and asked the Simsbury-based Plowshares Institute to train community leaders in ``deep listening skills'' and mediation. The center trains individuals from an assortment of ethnic, religious, professional and other backgrounds to learn to communicate and solve conflicts more effectively. One of the key points is learning to understand the needs and interests of an opponent in a conflict situation, said Executive Director Margaret Steinegger-Keyser.

"We move from strong positions to seeing the needs and concerns of others. People begin to see their own approaches to conflict very differently," said Steinegger-Keyser, a native of South Africa.

"When we get stuck in our positions, we can get pretty rigid," said Rhine, now one of the center's board members. "What we do here is keep probing, but in a very inviting way."

The Community Conflict Transformation training approach used in the program was originally developed in South Africa. Between 1992-94, Plowshares trained 1,300 community leaders in South Africa, teaching them mediation, negotiation and communication skills in order to help find peaceful solutions to local problems.

One of the primary means is through role-playing with fictitious scenarios which represent common conflict issues that are universal.

"We look for the real issues," said Rhine. "Once you get there, you've got a lot more to work with. When both parties get there, we find areas in common. This technique allows us to get at that place in a way that's very respectful, and that works."

The three-round training cycle begins with a 14-hour basic training workshop. This is followed by advanced training, three to six months later. The final round takes place yet another three to six months later, basically repeating the skills learned in the second round.

Abdul Rahmaan Muhammad, senior vice president and diversity manager at The Village for Families and Children, is a board member of the center and a co-trainer. He said the center's technique is not just about looking for the "right" position to take in a conflict, but to truly understand where each person involved is coming from.

"We try to push the envelope," he said, "and challenge people on the positions they take."

One such person was Shannon Perry, who participated in the basic training course. He equated the role-playing scenarios to learning how to drive a car in a parking lot, and then having to move onto the road.

"Obviously, it's always a little better in a real situation," he said, "because the stakes are higher. You know the situations are a bit contrived, but I think they did a good job. At least one was a real scenario, with just the names changed."

After a conflict is resolved, there are often feelings of awkwardness or bitterness between the parties involved. Thus, the center also includes "team-building sessions," which help people learn to build better feelings after a resolution.

It is in these sessions, said Steinegger-Keyser, that people can unload negative emotions and learn to deal with them more effectively. "If you get angry, let it out," she said. "That's your place of safety."

From February to September 2000, approximately 100 people were trained in the Community Conflict Transformation technique. The next training session is scheduled for March 19, 20 and 21 from noon to 5 p.m. The center's goal, said Steinegger-Keyser, is to train 500 people over a three-year period.

The Center for Conflict Transformation is located at 47 Vine St., Hartford. For more information, contact Executive Director Margaret Steinegger-Keyser at 860-246-3369, Ext. 111. The basic training costs $50.